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Pleasanton: Students asked to share pornographic photos, district warns parents

By Karina Ioffee Bay Area News Group

Posted:
04/25/2014 05:51:59 AM PDT

Updated:
04/25/2014 06:25:03 AM PDT

Parents whose children attend Pleasanton Unified School District were alerted Thursday that someone has been contacting students via social media in an attempt to obtain pornographic photos.

The messages were sent through Instagram, an app that allows users to take and share photos. It appears to have come from an account located "outside the community," according to a message sent by the district.

Superintendent Parvin Ahmadi said several students had recently received inappropriate messages, but she would not specify how many students had been contacted or which grade levels. The incidents did not take place at school or on school computers.

Instead, Ahmadi said the district's letter was meant to remind families to discuss Internet safety tips with their kids. That includes not sharing personal details online, not opening messages from strangers and notifying an adult when something inappropriate happens.

"We are asking parents to have that conversation with their children," Ahmadi said.